Found 26 talks width keyword active galaxies

Abstract

The dust component of active galactic nuclei (AGN) produces a broad infrared spectral energy distribution (SED), whose power and shape depends on the fraction of the source absorbed, and the geometry of the absorber respectively. This emitting region is expected to be concentrated within the inner ∼5 pc of the AGN which makes almost impossible to image it with the current instruments. The study of the infrared SED by comparison between infrared AGN spectra and predicted models is one of the few ways to infer the properties of the AGN dust. We explore a set of six dusty models of AGN with available SEDs, namely Fritz et al. (2006), Nenkova et al. (2008B), Hoenig & Kishimoto (2010), Siebenmorgen et al. (2015), Stalevski et al. (2016), and Hoenig & Kishimoto (2017). They cover a wide range of morphologies, dust distributions, and compositions.

We explore the discrimination among models and parameter restriction using synthetic spectra (Gonzalez-Martin et al. 2019A), and perform spectral fitting of a sample of 110 AGN with Spitzer/IRS drawn from the Swift/BAT survey (Gonzalez-Martin et al. 2019B). Our conclusion is that most of these models can be discriminated using only mid-infrared spectroscopy as long as the host galaxy contribution is less than 50%. The best model describing the sample is the clumpy disk-wind model by Hoenig & Kishimoto (2017). However, large residuals are shown irrespective of the model used, indicating that AGN dust is more complex than models. We found that the parameter space covered by models is not completely adequate. This talk will give tips for observers and modelers to actually answer the question: how is the dust arrange in AGN? This question will be one of the main subjects of future research using JWST in the AGN field.

Abstract

Why did galaxies stop forming stars? Why do black holes in galactic nuclei have masses proportional to bulge masses? What are the physical mechanisms leading the transition from gas-rich, star-forming galaxies, to red gas-deprived passive galaxies? Theoretical models predict that AGN should play a major role in this co-evolution, by driving super winds that are eventually able to remove gas from galaxies, thus quenching star-formation and preventing them from over growing. Today’s flagship Instruments - like ALMA and MUSE/VLT - allow to routinely detect AGN-driven massive winds, and to spatially resolve and measure their main parameters. AGN driven galactic winds seem a widespread feature in AGN host galaxies in the local universe, with mounting numbers also in the distant universe. But questions arise about their net impact on the surrounding ISM, on the relative importance of quenching versus stimulating star-formation, on the removal of the gas reservoirs from the disks of the host galaxies. Do we really understand the interplay of these AGN super-winds with the ISM of the host galaxy, and -perhaps more importantly- with the entire AGN/host galaxy/circum-galactic medium (CGM) ecosystem? I will discuss both observational and theoretical recent results on this topic - and highlight possible strategies to progress.

Abstract

The Major Atmospheric Gamma-ray Imaging Cherenkov (MAGIC) telescopes reported the discovery of the most distant gamma-ray source ever observed at very high energies, thanks to the “replay” of an enormous flare by a galactic gravitational lens as foreseen by Einstein’s General Relativity. QSO B0218+357 is a gravitationally lensed blazar located at a redshift of 0.944. The gravitational lensing splits the emitted radiation into two components separated by a 10–12 day delay. In July 2014, QSO B0218+357 experienced a violent flare observed by the Fermi-LAT and followed by the MAGIC telescopes.The spectral energy distribution of QSO B0218+357 can give information on the energetics of z ~ 1 very high energy gamma-ray sources. Moreover the gamma-ray emission can also be used as a probe of the extragalactic background light at z ~ 1. MAGIC performed observations of QSO B0218+357 during the expected arrival time of the delayed component of the emission. The MAGIC and Fermi-LAT observations were accompanied by quasi-simultaneous optical data from the KVA telescope and X-ray observations by Swift-XRT. We construct a multiwavelength spectral energy distribution of QSO B0218+357 and use it to model the source. The GeV and sub-TeV data obtained by Fermi-LAT and MAGIC are used to set constraints on the extragalactic background light.Very high energy gamma-ray emission was detected from the direction of QSO B0218+357 by the MAGIC telescopes during the expected time of arrival of the trailing component of the flare, making it the farthest very high energy gamma-ray source detected to date. The combined MAGIC and Fermi-LAT spectral energy distribution of QSO B0218+357 is consistent with current extragalactic background light models. The broadband emission can be modeled in the framework of a two-zone external Compton scenario, where the GeV emission comes from an emission region in the jet, located outside the broad line region.

Work published in A&A 595, A98 (2016) ( http://www.aanda.org/articles/aa/abs/2016/11/aa29461-16/aa29461-16.html)

Abstract

The search for detection of gamma-rays in the very-high-energy range (VHE, >100GeV) from distant AGNs by Imaging Atmospheric Cherenkov Telescopes (IACTs) gets very complicated at high redshifts, not only because of the lower flux due to the distance of the source, but also due to the consequent absorption of gamma-rays by the extragalactic background light (EBL), affecting VHE sources at z~0.1 and beyond. The farthest source ever detected in the VHE domain was the blazar PKS1424+240, at redshift z>0.6. In the last months MAGIC, a system of two 17 m of diameter IACTs located in the Canary island of La Palma, has been able to go beyond that limit and to push the boundaries for VHE detection to redshifts z~1. The two sources detected and analyzed, blazar S30218+35 (Atel discovery #6349) and FSRQ PKS1441+25 (Atel discovery #7416) are located at redshift z=0.944 and z=0.939 respectively. S30218+35 is also the first gravitational lensed blazar ever detected in VHE. The multiwavelength dataset collected allowed us to test for the first time the present generation of EBL models at such distances. I will show results on MAGIC analysis on S30218+35 and PKS1441-25, including spectral energy distributions and EBL absorption studies, in a multi-wavelength context.

Abstract

Recent works show that the restframe colours of X-ray selected AGN host galaxies at z~1 are no different from those of inactive galaxies once stellar mass selection effects are taken into account. However, there is a clear deficit of AGN among quiescent galaxies, and the average star formation rates of AGN hosts are comparable or higher than those of inactive star-forming galaxies. These apparently contradictory findings could be a consequence of higher extinction in star-forming AGN hosts compensating for their younger stellar populations in observed colours. In this talk I will present a new method of extinction correction that breaks the degeneracy with stellar age and metallicity by comparing the restframe U-V colour with measurements of the Dn(4000) index on intermediate band photospectra from SHARDS. I'll show that the distribution of extinction corrected U-V colours and Dn(4000) for AGN hosts at z<1 is significantly different from that of comparison samples of inactive galaxies, with a clear deficit of AGN in intrinsic red galaxies and a higher prevalence among those with intermediate age stellar populations.

Abstract

FeII comprises up to one third of the line emission in AGNs. For that reason it is an important coolant that needs to be taken into accountto fully understand the energetics of the broad line region (BLR). In thistalk I will discuss new approaches to study the excitation mechanisms ofthe FeII based on a semi-empirical template we derived in thenear-infrared region (NIR). We correlate the strength of the NIR andoptical iron lines to assess the relative contribution of the differentmechanisms that produces that emission. We found that in all casesLy_alpha fluorescence plays an important role, being a process that needsto be considered in any approach aimed at understanding this complexemission. We also compare the width of the individual FeII lines with thatof other lines emitted in BLR. Our results confirm previous assumptionsand results from variabilty studies that the gas responsible for the FeIIemission is the outer portion of the BLR.

Abstract

In order to understand galaxy formation it is crucial to obtain sensitive observations of the emission of dust and molecular gas both of which constrain the on-going star formation or AGN activity and the future potential of the galaxy to grow. Constraining the growth of ensemble of galaxies in the distant universe and not simply the most active ones, is one of the primary goals of current and planned (sub)mm facilities such as ALMA or SPICA. I will discuss two major questions in galaxy formation and assembly: 1) are dusty galaxies vigorously forming stars embedded within large scale structures at z>1.5; and 2) do dusty starbursts exist at the highest redshift. To shed light on these obscure topics, I will present our on-going observations of dust and molecular gas with a number of different (sub)mm facilities such as Herschel, APEX, IRAM or ALMA of one important star forming galaxy population in the distant universe: submillimeter selected galaxies (SMGs). My presentation will be complemented by our recently initiated census of the molecular gas reservoirs of nearby galaxies with optical IFU coverage. The local analogs serve as a reference sample for current and future studies of high-z galaxy populations.

Abstract

The active galactic nuclei is conformed by a number of classes. Optically they are defined using diagnostics based on optical emission lines. At X-rays they are classified by the power of the AGN continuum and the shape of the X-ray spectra. Therefore, optical and X-ray classes are independent classifications. However, optical and X-ray classes show many discrepancies not fully understood yet. Some AGN at X-rays do not show any AGN signature at optical wavelengths (called optical elusive). Classical obscured AGN are ’sometimes’ not obscured at X-rays.

We have studied the ‘synapses’ between them using artificial neural networks (Gonzalez-Martin+14). To do so, we used flux-calibrated X-ray spectra of a sample of 90 emission line nuclei (ELN) observed with XMM-Newton. It includes starbursts (SB), transition objects (T2), LINERs (L1.8 and L2), and Seyferts (S1, S1.8, and S2).

The ELN can be classified into six classes, based on the shape of their X-ray spectra. These classes are associated with most of the optical classes. The key parameters to explain them at X-rays are three. The first parameter is an AGN-like component, which is present in all of them (even non-AGN at optical wavelengths!). The second one is obscuration, which almost certainly drives the Type-1/Type-2 dichotomy, but may also explain why L1.8 are more similar to S1s while L2/T2 are more similar to S1.8s. The third component is star-forming activity happening at the host galaxy and contributing at X-rays. The AGN strength, relative to the host-galaxy component, determines the average X-ray spectrum for these classes as follows: S1 -> S1.8 -> L1.8/S2 -> L2/T2/ -> SB.

Abstract

There is increasing speculation that quasars are intimately linked to the evolution of their host galaxies. Not only are they triggered as galaxies build up mass through gas accretion, but they also have the potential to drive massive outflows that can directly affect galaxy evolution by heating the gas and expelling it from galaxy bulges. However, there remain considerable uncertainties about how, when and where quasars are triggered as galaxies evolve, and the true energetic significance for the quasar-induced outflows and their acceleration mechanism have yet to be established. In this talk I will present new Gemini, VLT, Spitzer and Herschel results on samples of luminous AGN in the local Universe which provide key information on the triggering mechanisms for quasars and physics of their outflows.

Abstract

The ALHAMBRA (Advance Large Homogeneous Area Medium Band Redshift Astronomical; Moles et al. 2008) survey has observed 8 different regions of the sky, including sections of the COSMOS, DEEP2, ELAIS, GOODS-N, SDSS and Groth fields using a new photometric system with 20 contiguous, ~300A width, filters covering the optical range, plus deep JHKs imaging. The observations, carried out with the Calar Alto 3.5m telescope using the wide field (0.25 deg2 FOV) optical camera LAICA and the NIR instrument Omega-2000, correspond to ~700hrs of on-target science images. The photometric system was specifically designed to maximize the effective depth of the survey in terms of accurate spectral-type and photometric redshift estimation along with the capability of identification of relatively faint emission lines.

The ALHAMBRA Gold catalogue corresponds to a subsample of ~100k bright galaxies (+20.000 stars in the galactic halo and ~1000 AGN candidates), photometrically complete down to magnitude I=23AB, with very accurate and reliable photometric redshift estimations.

Considering that the Spanish community will have privileged access to the data until Nov15th 2013, this seminar is intended to be a brief introduction to the potential (doable) science with the ALHAMBRA-survey.